The Becoming
:
The Becoming

Publisher's Summary

The Michaluk Virus is loose. In the heart of Atlanta, the virus has escaped the CDC, and its effects are widespread and devastating. The virus infects nearly everyone in its path, turning much of the population of the southeastern United States into homicidal cannibals. As society rapidly crumbles under the hordes of infected, three people - Ethan Bennett, a Memphis police officer; Cade Alton, his best friend and former IDF sharpshooter; and Brandt Evans, a lieutenant in the US Marines - band together against the oncoming crush of death and terror sweeping across the world. As Cade, Brandt, and Ethan hole up in safe houses, others begin to join them in their bid for survival. When the infected attack and they’re forced to flee, one departs to Memphis in search of answers while the others escape south to Biloxi, where they encounter more danger than they bargained for. And in Memphis, the answers that one man finds are the last answers he wanted, answers that herald a horrific possibility that there may be more to this virus than first suspected.

Audible Editor Reviews

In the first book of Jessica Meigs' The Becoming series, the Michaluk Virus has escaped Atlanta's Center for Disease Control, engulfing the Southeast and turning its citizens into zombies. Cade, Brandt, and Ethan band together in an attempt to survive the hordes of walking dead and find the truth behind the virus. Christian Rummel has an incredible burr to his voice, so pleasingly rumbling and intense in his performance of Meigs' story that he helps to make The Becoming a riveting experience. His laudable commitment to Meigs' characters and scenario should sway even the most undead skeptic of zombie fiction.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful

sure if they're avid zombie fans. if you're new to the zombie genre, there are a lot of other books you should read before this.

Any additional comments?

i've been eating my way through the zombie novels on audible, and i came across this one, the becoming. i was skeptical at 1st b/c of the cover art, but i gave the sample a try. being an avid zombie fan, i decided to download the book b/c of the fast start to the story.

the story starts out with brandt running, hiding, and fighting through the streets of atllanta. apparently, he was part of a marine contingent at the cdc (center for disease control) when a virus went air born and started infecting people. he abandoned his post as soon as he realized the red line was crossed.

the story then breaks to memphis, tn. it's the morning after ethan has been promoted. he's hung over. he manages to join his wife, anna, and best friend, cabe, out back for some grilled food. when ethan asks cabe about her boyfriend, drew, she tells him that he came back from his business trip to atlanta with a cold. later in the day, they get the news that there's rioting in memphis. anna is called into the hospital to help. as night falls, all H-E-Double Hockey Sticks starts to break loose.

the 1st part of the becoming covers the initial outbreak of the michaluk virus. then there is a time skip of about 3 months. this is done pretty well.

the book is paced well. there's zombie action in the beginning, followed by some down time, and then there's more zombie action action that leads to the ending.

while i liked the story, there were parts that were unbelievable. according to my myers briggs personality type, i'm an intp (introversion, intuition, thinking, perception). whle i'm sure i'd be freaking out and half hysterical at 1st, i'd like to think i'd get my s#!t together within 72 hours. at least, that's what i think! lol anyway, i KNOW i wouldn't be screaming, throwing temper tangents, and breaking stuff. ethan and cabe are both hot heads, who at times let their emotions get the better of them. he's been a cop for 20 years, and she was an idf (israeli defense force) soldier for 7 years. so, it is kind of unbelievable when they lose control of their emotions when they're supposed to be keeping it low key, hiding in their safe house. my best friend is very loud. it's even a joke among our friends. i don't think he'd lose it like ethan and cabe do at times.

anyway, that's my major complaint.

the zombie action is pretty good. there is a nice twist on the zombies. they aren't your pure romero type slow, dumb, walkers. since this is the 1st in a series, i hope the author fleshes out why some of the infected are smarter than others. well, i may have just answered my own question. in this story, there are people who are infected but aren't yet zombies- they haven't been killed. maybe the infected but not dead are the smart ones? well, it is a twist that's kind of a mystery, and i'm a sucker for mysteries.

the narrator is ok. be ready for a bunch of southern drawl. i'm from virginia and don't think i have an accent even though my yankee friends think i do. lol i tell them if they want accent, then i can introduce them to some of my friends who're from georgia. lol

overall, it was what i wanted. a pretty good zombie story. yes, there are some problems and annoyances, but i'm not looking to solve any deep conundrums. i wanted to be entertained, and i was. the becoming isn't in my top 15, but it was entertaining enough for me to download book 2.

I'm going to be as nice about this as possible. This is a very good zombie tale, IF you are 8 years old, and have never read a zombie book EVER, or seen a zombie movie EVER. If you have the intellect of anyone over 8, this is not for you. The vocabulary is blisteringly uninspired. The story line and characters are so boring that it's hard to focus. They respond and react in ways that are so boring and dull in the most pressure-filled situations, and then they throw in dialogue that is just insulting to the reader-- stuff that even a high school English teacher would roll her eyes at.

The narrarator is horrible, which is hard for me to say, because I'm usually happy with anyone reading a book to me -- saves me the time to have to read it! I gave the story 3 stars, because at least there's so sort of an original story in there, just not a very interesting one. Like I said, if you're a kid, you'd probably like this book (but be warned, there is adult language in it). In fact, I had originally thought I'd made a mistake and downloaded a children's book, until I heard the adult language.

Read WWZ, Day By Day Armageddon, or Walking Dead on Audible for better Zombie fare. I'm sorry, but I can't even recommend this for a needed "Zombie Fix".